Cha in 1979 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1953-05-22)22 May 1953 (age 72) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Hwaseong, South Korea | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Forward | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1967–1968[2] | Kyungshin Middle School [ko] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1969–1971 | Kyungshin High School [ko] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1972–1975 | Korea University [ko] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1976 | Korea Trust Bank [ko] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1976–1979 | ROK Air Force (draft) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1978–1979 | Darmstadt 98 | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1979–1983 | Eintracht Frankfurt | 122 | (46) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1983–1989 | Bayer Leverkusen | 185 | (52) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 308 | (98) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1970–1972 | South Korea U20 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1972–1986 | South Korea | 136 | (58) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1994 | Hyundai Horang-i | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–1998 | South Korea | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1998–1999 | Shenzhen Ping'an | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2010 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 차범근 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | 車範根 |
| RR | Cha Beomgeun |
| MR | Ch'a Pŏmgŭn |
Cha Bum-kun (Korean: 차범근;Korean pronunciation:[tɕʰɐbʌmɡɯn] or[tɕʰɐ][pʌmɡɯn]; born 22 May 1953) is a South Korean formerfootball manager and player. Aforward, he was nicknamedTscha Bum or "Cha Boom" in Germany because of his name and thunderous ball striking ability.[5] He showed explosive pace and powerful shots.[6][7] He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Asian footballers of all time.[8][9][10]
In 1972, Cha had been capped for theSouth Korea national team as the youngest player of the time at the age of 18. He is the youngest player to ever reach100 international caps in the world at 24 years and 35 days,[note 1] and the all-time leading goalscorer of the South Korean national team with 58 goals. After dominating Asian competitions including the1978 Asian Games, he left forWest Germany and played forEintracht Frankfurt andBayer Leverkusen. He scored a total of 121 goals in twoBundesliga clubs, and won theUEFA Cup with each team.[15]
After his retirement, he opened a football academy to develop youth players in South Korea, and managed the national team for the1998 FIFA World Cup.
Cha was born inHwaseong,Gyeonggi. He originally joined Yeongdo Middle School to learn football, but the school's football club was dissolved as soon as he joined there. He started his football career by transferring to Kyungshin Middle School after playingfield hockey for Yeongdo for one and a half years. In his high school days, he tried to leave school due to older students' violence, but continued to play football with the managerChang Woon-soo's help.[2] He became a notable player of Kyungshin High School, and was selected for theSouth Korean under-20 team in 1970.
Cha enteredKorea University in 1972, and won theKorean National Championship in 1974, the predecessor of theKorean FA Cup.[16] After his graduation, he started his senior career with Korea Trust Bank FC in 1976. He led his team to the title and was named the best player in the spring season of theKorean Semi-professional League.[17] In October 1976, he joinedAir Force FC to serve hismandatory military service.[18] Cha originally had a plan to enlist in the Navy FC, but theROK Air Force persuaded him that it would move his discharge up by six months.[19]
While playing for the national team in the1978 Korea Cup, Cha attracted the attention of anEintracht Frankfurt coachDieter Schulte [de], who had received an invitation to serve as an scout/observer at that tournament. In November 1978, Schulte sent a letter to theKFA (Korea Football Association), suggesting Cha's tryout inWest Germany, who would be discharged from the ROK Air Force in January 1979.[19] Cha had taken time off to leave forFrankfurt after the1978 Asian Games in December and succeeded to contract with anotherBundesliga clubDarmstadt 98 by signing a six-month deal.[19] However, he spent just less than a month inDarmstadt. The ROK Air Force didn't follow the contract with Cha, and ordered his return. After his debut match againstVfL Bochum on 30 December, Cha returned to South Korea due to his complicated issue about military service on 5 January. He eventually spent the remainder of the duration of his military service until 31 May, and so could not play for Darmstadt.[20]
After being discharged from the military service completely, Cha still wanted to play in Bundesliga, and joined Eintracht Frankfurt at age 26 in July 1979. He scored in three consecutive games from third to fifth matchday of the Bundesliga, making an immediate impact early in his new club.[21] After the first half of his first season in Germany, he was classified as world class in thekicker-Rangliste [de].[22] He was also acclaimed by showing great performances helping Eintracht to win its first-everUEFA Cup title. He was evaluated as the "unstoppable player" by SirAlex Ferguson (Aberdeen's manager at the time),[9][23][24] and "one of the best attackers in the world" byLothar Matthäus (an opponent player at theUEFA Cup final and the Bundesliga).[9][25] In addition to a UEFA Cup title, he was named along withKarl-Heinz Rummenigge andKevin Keegan in the Bundesliga Team of the Season bykicker.[26] On 23 August 1980, Cha's spine had been cracked byJürgen Gelsdorf, who had tackled him from behind, but came back to the stadium after a month.[24][27] Afterwards, he scored six goals in six matches of the1980–81 DFB-Pokal, leading Eintracht to the title. He became Eintracht's top goalscorer for three consecutive seasons.[28]
However, Cha transferred toBayer Leverkusen due to a financial difficulty of Frankfurt in 1983.[24] In the1985–86 Bundesliga, he scored his most goals in a single Bundesliga season with 17 goals, and Leverkusen qualified for the UEFA Cup for the first time as the sixth-placed team.[29] The magazinekicker once again selected him for the Team of the Season,[30] and theAbendpost-Nachtausgabe [de] gave him the Player of the Season award.[31] In the1988 UEFA Cup final, he scored a dramatic equaliser againstEspanyol to tie the game 3–3. Leverkusen eventually went on to win the game on penalties, holding its first European title.[24]
Cha retired in 1989 after playing 308 Bundesliga games as a fair player. During his Bundesliga career, he scored 98 goals without a penalty, and received only one yellow card.[15] On 31 October 1987, he scored his 93rd Bundesliga goal, becoming the top foreign goalscorer by surpassingWilli Lippens.[32] His scoring record wasn't broken for eleven years untilStéphane Chapuisat scored more goals than him.[33] As of 2024, Cha is ranked ninth along withPierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the Bundesliga's foreign goalscorer standings.[33]

Cha generally played the Bundesliga games as astriker, but he had originally been awinger in South Korea.[34] He became aSouth Korean under-20 international in 1970, and took part in theAFC Youth Championship in1971 and1972.[3][4] In the1972 AFC Asian Cup, he made his senior international debut againstIraq, and scored his first international goal againstKhmer Republic.[35] He was named in theKorean FA Best XI for seven consecutive years, and was selected as the Korean FA Player of the Year in 1973.[36]
Cha usually played for the national team in theKorea Cup,Merdeka Tournament andKing's Cup (Thailand), which were annually contested between Asian nations and the invited clubs at the time. He won a total of ten trophies and also left memorable games in three competitions.[35] In the 1975 Merdeka Tournament, he scored his first international hat-trick againstJapan.[35] In the1976 Korea Cup, he scored a hat-trick againstMalaysia during five minutes from 83rd to 88th minute, leading South Korea to a dramatic 4–4 draw.[37]
In the1978 FIFA World Cup qualification, he played all of South Korea's twelve matches, and recorded five goals and two assists,[38][39] although his knee got a boil during the competition.[40] However, South Korea failed to qualify for the World Cup by finishing the qualification as runners-up despite his struggle.
In the1978 Asian Games, he scored two goals and provided two assists, contributing to team's gold medal.[41][42] However, he showed lethargic plays to prepare tryouts for Bundesliga clubs, and received criticisms.[43] After the 1978 Asian Games, he left for the Bundesliga and didn't play for South Korea. His last international tournament was the1986 FIFA World Cup, South Korea's first World Cup since 1954. He showed exemplary performance in intensive checks by opponents,[44][45] but failed to prevent South Korea's elimination in the group stage.

Cha moved into management withK League sideHyundai Horang-i, coaching them from 1991–94. His next appointment in January 1997 was Korean national team coach and he led the nation to the1998 FIFA World Cup; however, a disastrous 5–0 defeat at the hands of theNetherlands in Korea's second group game got Cha fired. He later blamed theKFA for the bad performance, citing lack of bonuses and alleging pro soccer games in Korea were fixed. The association promptly slapped a five-year ban on him and he soon left the country with his wife.
After an 18-month spell coachingShenzhen Ping'an inChina, Cha took up a commentator position withMBC in Korea. He returned to coaching in late 2003 when offered theSuwon Samsung Bluewings position. Cha achieved immediate success with Suwon by lifting the2004 K League championship, an achievement he ranked as even better than the UEFA Cup he won as a player in 1988. He later resigned in June 2010 as Suwon manager.
Cha is a devoutChristian and said the faith is one of his three biggest values along with family and football.[46]
Cha's second child,Cha Du-ri, also played for the South Korean national team and Bundesliga clubs, among them Eintracht, following in his father's footsteps.
In November 2019, Cha received theCross of Merit from the German government.[47]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Korea Trust Bank | 1976 | Semipro League | ? | ? | ?[a] | ? | — | ?[b] | ? | ? | ? | |
| ROK Air Force (draft) | 1976 | Semipro League | ? | ? | ?[a] | ? | — | ?[b] | ? | ? | ? | |
| 1977 | Semipro League | ? | ? | ?[a] | ? | — | ?[b] | ? | ? | ? | ||
| 1978 | Semipro League | ? | ? | ?[a] | ? | — | ?[b] | ? | ? | ? | ||
| 1979 | Semipro League | ? | ? | ?[a] | ? | — | ?[b] | ? | ? | ? | ||
| Total | ? | ? | ? | ? | — | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| Darmstadt 98 | 1978–79 | Bundesliga | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 1979–80 | Bundesliga | 31 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 11[c] | 3 | — | 46 | 15 | |
| 1980–81 | Bundesliga | 27 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 5[c] | 2 | — | 38 | 16 | ||
| 1981–82 | Bundesliga | 31 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 6[d] | 1 | — | 38 | 12 | ||
| 1982–83 | Bundesliga | 33 | 15 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 34 | 15 | |||
| Total | 122 | 46 | 12 | 6 | 22 | 6 | — | 156 | 58 | |||
| Bayer Leverkusen | 1983–84 | Bundesliga | 34 | 12 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 12 | ||
| 1984–85 | Bundesliga | 29 | 10 | 3 | 4 | — | — | 32 | 14 | |||
| 1985–86 | Bundesliga | 34 | 17 | 4 | 2 | — | — | 38 | 19 | |||
| 1986–87 | Bundesliga | 33 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3[c] | 2 | — | 38 | 9 | ||
| 1987–88 | Bundesliga | 25 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 10[c] | 2 | — | 35 | 6 | ||
| 1988–89 | Bundesliga | 30 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | — | 37 | 3 | ||
| Total | 185 | 52 | 15 | 7 | 15 | 4 | — | 215 | 63 | |||
| Career total | 308 | 98 | 27 | 13 | 37 | 10 | ? | ? | 372 | 121 | ||
TheKFA is showing the list of Cha's 136 international appearances in its official website.[35] TheRSSSF is also claiming 136 appearances about Cha's international career, but its details have some discrepancies.[13]FIFA registered him with 130 appearances in theFIFA Century Club by excluding six matches in the Summer Olympics qualification.[14]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Korea | 1972 | 23 | 6 |
| 1973 | 17 | 8 | |
| 1974 | 13 | 2 | |
| 1975 | 19[a] | 9 | |
| 1976 | 19[b] | 13 | |
| 1977 | 26 | 15 | |
| 1978 | 16 | 5 | |
| 1986 | 3 | 0 | |
| Career total | 136 | 58 | |
| Competition | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Friendlies | 10 | 2 |
| Minor competitions | 76 | 44 |
| Asian Games | 12 | 2 |
| AFC Asian Cup qualification | 4 | 0 |
| AFC Asian Cup | 5 | 1 |
| Summer Olympics qualification | 6 | 2 |
| FIFA World Cup qualification | 20 | 7 |
| FIFA World Cup | 3 | 0 |
| Total | 136 | 58 |
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 May 1972 | National Stadium,Bangkok, Thailand | 2 | 3–0 | 4–1 | 1972 AFC Asian Cup | |
| 2 | 19 July 1972 | Perak Stadium,Ipoh, Malaysia | 8 | 2–0 | 4–1 | 1972 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 3 | 23 July 1972 | Stadium Merdeka,Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 9 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1972 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 4 | 29 July 1972 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 11 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1972 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 5 | 20 September 1972 | Dongdaemun Stadium,Seoul, South Korea | 13 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 1972 Korea Cup | |
| 6 | 22 November 1972 | National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | 21 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1972 King's Cup | |
| 7 | 19 May 1973 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 24 | 2–0 | 4–0 | 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 8 | 28 May 1973 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 28 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 9 | 22 September 1973 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 30 | 2–0 | 6–0 | 1973 Korea Cup | |
| 10 | 4–0 | ||||||
| 11 | 30 September 1973 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 33 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1973 Korea Cup | |
| 12 | 16 December 1973 | National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | 37 | 4–0 | 5–0 | 1973 King's Cup | |
| 13 | 22 December 1973 | National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | 39 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1973 King's Cup | |
| 14 | 25 December 1973 | National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | 40 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1973 King's Cup | |
| 15 | 18 May 1974 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 43 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 1974 Korea Cup | |
| 16 | 25 December 1974 | Hong Kong | 54 | 2–0 | 3–1 | Hong Kong Tournament | |
| 17 | 29 July 1975 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 58 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 1975 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 18 | 7 August 1975 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 61 | 3–0 | 6–0 | 1975 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 19 | 9 August 1975 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 62 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1975 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 20 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 21 | 3–1 | ||||||
| 22 | 11 August 1975 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 63 | 1–0 | 5–1 | 1975 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 23 | 15 August 1975 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 64 | 4–0 | 4–0 | 1975 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 24 | 21 December 1975 | National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | 68 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1975 King's Cup | |
| 25 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 26 | 6 March 1976 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 73 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 1976 Summer Olympics qualification | |
| 27 | 27 March 1976 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 75 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1976 Summer Olympics qualification | |
| 28 | 10 August 1976 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 79 | 1–0 | 8–0 | 1976 Merdeka Tournament [ms] | |
| 29 | 5–0 | ||||||
| 30 | 8–0 | ||||||
| 31 | 15 August 1976 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 81 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 1976 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 32 | 11 September 1976 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 84 | 2–4 | 4–4 | 1976 Korea Cup | |
| 33 | 3–4 | ||||||
| 34 | 4–4 | ||||||
| 35 | 13 September 1976 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 85 | 4–0 | 4–0 | 1976 Korea Cup | |
| 36 | 17 September 1976 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 86 | 1–0 | 7–0 | 1976 Korea Cup | |
| 37 | 7–0 | ||||||
| 38 | 22 December 1976 | National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | 91 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1976 King's Cup | |
| 39 | 14 February 1977 | Singapore | 92 | 1–0 | 4–0 | Friendly | |
| 40 | 18 February 1977 | Al Ahli Stadium,Manama, Bahrain | 93 | 2–0 | 4–1 | Friendly | |
| 41 | 20 March 1977 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 96 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 42 | 3 April 1977 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 98 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 43 | 26 June 1977 | Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong | 100 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 44 | 17 July 1977 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 102 | 2–0 | 4–0 | 1977 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 45 | 22 July 1977 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 104 | 3–1 | 5–1 | 1977 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 46 | 24 July 1977 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 105 | 2–0 | 4–0 | 1977 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 47 | 31 July 1977 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 108 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1977 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 48 | 27 August 1977 | Sydney Sports Ground,Sydney, Australia | 109 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 49 | 3 September 1977 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 110 | 3–0 | 5–1 | 1977 Korea Cup | |
| 50 | 5 September 1977 | Daegu Civic Stadium,Daegu, South Korea | 111 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 1977 Korea Cup | |
| 51 | 3–0 | ||||||
| 52 | 13 September 1977 | Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | 112 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 1977 Korea Cup | |
| 53 | 5 November 1977 | Al Kuwait Sports Club Stadium,[48]Kuwait City, Kuwait | 115 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 54 | 19 July 1978 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 121 | 2–0 | 4–0 | 1978 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 55 | 22 July 1978 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 122 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1978 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 56 | 25 July 1978 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 123 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1978 Merdeka Tournament | |
| 57 | 11 December 1978 | Chulalongkorn University Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | 127 | 3–0 | 5–1 | 1978 Asian Games | |
| 58 | 17 December 1978 | Bangkok, Thailand | 130 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1978 Asian Games |
Korea University
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Bayer Leverkusen
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